Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
Quick Summary of Syzranskaya Pipochka 🌍 Origin: A treasured, historic Russian heirloom from the city of Syzran, known to be over 100 years old. The name translates to “Syzran Little Beak,” referring to its pointed shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall vining), mid-early season. The bush is powerful, highly vigorous, and completely disease-resistant. Growers recommend … Read more
Quick Summary of Radishchevskie 🌍 Origin: A local “folk” (family) heirloom from Russia. The name likely originates from the village of Radishchevo in the Ulyanovsk region. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (vining). It grows as a strong, relatively compact bush, reaching about 1.6-1.7 meters (5.2-5.5 ft) tall in a greenhouse. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large beefsteaks reaching … Read more
Quick Summary of Rozovyi Izyum (Pink Raisin) ⚠️ Important Note: Do not confuse this variety with Rozovyi Izyumnyi (Pink Raisin Beefsteak). This is a completely different, cocktail-sized tomato! 🌍 Origin: A highly sought-after heirloom originally sourced from Ukraine. The name translates to “Pink Raisin”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Semi-determinate. It stays relatively compact, growing up to … Read more
Quick Summary of Rambinik 🌍 Origin: A rugged, highly dependable Russian commercial variety bred for tough northern climates. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush) with distinctive Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. It is unfussy, incredibly stress-tolerant, and reaches about 1.2 m (4 ft) tall when grown in a greenhouse. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Produces abundant clusters of small, … Read more
Quick Summary of Rabiga 🌍 Origin: A rare Russian collector’s heirloom (originally sourced from the private collection of V. Monakhova). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (vining). Outdoors in cooler climates, it can stay relatively compact around 1.2 m (4 feet) tall, but it thrives and grows much larger when planted in a greenhouse. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: … Read more
Quick Summary of Rumyanyi (Rosy) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial and collectible variety. The name translates to “Rosy” or “Ruddy”, perfectly describing its glowing pinkish-red skin. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). It is a sturdy, compact plant growing about 50-70 cm (20-28 inches) outdoors, and stretching up to 1 meter (3.3 feet) in a greenhouse. … Read more
Quick Summary of Rozovye Krupnye (Large Pink) 🌍 Origin: A legendary Russian family heirloom. It was popularized by a famous forum member, Ninulia, who has been saving and distributing its seeds since 2002. It often circulates as “Rozovye Krupnye from Ninulia”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), reaching the ceiling in greenhouses. The plant habit is … Read more
Quick Summary of Paslyon Chernyy (Black Nightshade) 🌍 Origin: A Russian club variety (originally distributed by the St. Petersburg Tomato Club). The name intriguingly translates to “Black Nightshade”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate, but a very tall one! It grows to about 1.5–1.7m (5–5.5 ft) before it terminates (self-tops) and stops growing upward. It performs very … Read more
Quick Summary of Palchiki (Little Fingers) 🌍 Origin: A classic Russian “family heirloom” (folk breeding) originating from the Rostov region. The original poster has maintained this variety in her family collection for over 20 years. The name Palchiki translates to “Little Fingers”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Outdoors in open ground, it grows to about … Read more
Quick Summary of Striped Pepper (Pertsevidnyy Polosatyy) 🌍 Origin: A classic Russian striped paste variety, though its origins are muddy. The name translates exactly to “Striped Pepper-shaped”. Warning: This variety suffers from a massive identity crisis on the commercial seed market. Different seed companies (SeDek, Gavrish, Nash Sad) sell completely different tomatoes under this name! … Read more
Quick Summary of Paul Robeson (Pol Robson) 🌍 Origin: A legendary Soviet-era heirloom named in honor of the American singer, actor, and civil rights activist Paul Robeson. Some sources claim it was bred in the 1930s, while others point to breeder M. Danilenko in the 1960s. 🌿 Plant Habit: Generally behaves as a vigorous semi-determinate … Read more